Like Moths To The Flame
by itsYOUiSEVER
Summary: In which a bloodthirsty woman may be the last of her face and she plans to go out with blood on her teeth and a sword in her gut. Thorin Oakenshield x OC


Athelas Wolfsbane was what most men would call savage. When you go through what she went through being savage is the least of your worries. Everything had been taken from her at a young age and she wanted vengeance.

Orc blood was what she sought most. It was the pale Orc that she needed to kill to get some kind of closure. She had watched it as it slaughtered her entire family and left her an orphan.

She had been too small and powerless at the time to have even gone up against the beast. She hid in a hollowed-out tree for days before she crawled out and grieved over her family. She swore to her father and mother that she would get revenge for them.

It was her bloodthirst that drew Gandalf in and caused him to ask her to be a part of a journey across Middle Earth to reclaim the Dwarven city of Erebor from the firedrake called Smaug. The Dwarven king though wasn't fond of Gandalf's choice of enforcer. To him, Athelas looked like a frail woman gone mad in grief but she was so much more than that.

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chapter one | darkness consumes all

Her breath created a fog a few inches from her face as her paws slapped against the ground with purpose. In her mouth was her pack that had all her weapons and her clothes in it. It was early in the morning. The sun was barely over the horizon and she had been running since the moon was high in the sky.

To be quite honest, Athelas hated traveling by horse. The creatures were too headstrong most of the time and didn't like that she was a creature herself so they wouldn't listen to her. Her wolf was sufficing enough to get her across Middle Earth in ample time.

Most creatures were scared of her. They could see the beast underneath her skin. It wasn't a pretty creature. Gaia as Athelas referred to her wolf had been through the same things she had and she was just as strong as her. Scarred with tufts of hair missing from her entire body due to the scars that her human body held. When the adrenaline left her body, Gaia had a limp. It favored its right front leg over the back right leg. In her human form, Athelas too had a limp that she tried to hide so she didn't look weak. There was a large scar from her right ankle up to the crook of her knee from an Orc who had gotten in a good swing.

The weapons strapped to her pack made a metal clanging noise with each step. Those weapons, her short swords and her dagger, they had taken lives and spilled blood numerous times. Her short swords had a name but her dagger had yet to make its name known to her. Her father always told Athelas that swords were named after great battles. He had been a blacksmith his whole life and Athelas had taken his words to heart. Her dagger had yet to see battles. _Wolfsfang_ was what the short swords had told her their name was.

Athelas didn't have a destination. Her body had told her to just keep running and she'd find what she was looking for. Gaia told her that she needed to just run. She couldn't explain it but there was just this feeling in her core telling her she needed to be there in that moment. She was headed south towards Bree but she didn't know if she'd even stop there. That question was answered by deep pain in Athelas' stomach. She hadn't eaten in days. She hadn't had the time to eat. There probably was a piece of stale bread at the bottom of her pack but she was just outside Bree.

Athelas tossed her pack to the side and allowed her body to transform. The process was always painful and it took a lot of energy out of her. A few minutes later, she was back in her human form laying in the grass. She took a few moments to collect herself. She let out a shaky breath and got herself up onto her feet. She moved over to her pack and grabbed out her clothes and leather armor.

She dressed herself quickly and adorned her leather armor. _Wolfsfang _found themselves resting on her back in their sheaths and her dagger was strapped to her thigh. She held her pack in her hands and rummaged through looking for her small pouch of gold. She grasped it in her hand and placed it back in the pack which she then slung over her shoulder.

It began to pour down rain and Athelas sighed deeply, annoyed that it decided to rain then and not when she had gotten into the tavern she planned to wander into. She didn't have a cloak to pull over her head and her hair plastered to her face as she walked towards the city of Bree.

She definitely stood out amongst the people of Bree. It wasn't often people saw a woman walking through their streets dressed in armor and weapons strapped to her person. She caught the attention of most of the people. She decided to take advantage of that and approached a young woman who she had caught staring at her.

The woman immediately apologized as Athelas moved towards her and tried to busy herself with what she had been doing but Athelas held a hand up. "I am looking for a place to eat and sleep. Where might I find that?" The raven-haired woman asked her as the other woman did nothing but a point in the direction Athelas had been walking towards.

Athelas thanked her and went on her way down the weaving streets. The rain was rather cold and she was soaked to the bone. When she laid eyes on the tavern known as _The Prancing Pony, _she was beyond happy. She made her way into the dark tavern and shook herself off like a dog at the entrance, gaining looks from the patrons.

She immediately sat down at the table that was closest to the fire that burned in the middle of the tavern. She placed her pack on a chair next to where she was sitting and waited for the barmaid to bring her some food.

One patron, in particular, stood out amongst the crowd and Athelas knew she wasn't the only one who noticed the Dwarven Lord sitting hunched over food. Two people, in particular, seemed to be taking great interest in the dwarf. Both men weren't soldiers. They were just men who had taken a coin and were trying to do someone else's bidding.

Truth be told, Athelas wanted a peaceful meal for once so she made a decision that probably wasn't the best. Athelas grabbed her pack and got up from her table, moving over to the dwarf's table. She sat herself down on the stool and gained his attention. His hand was reaching for his sword and she smirked at him. He really thought that he'd have the upper hand in this situation. If Athelas wanted him dead, he would have been dead ten times over.

"You are far from your home, my lord," Athelas remarked as she grabbed the attention of the barmaid and asked her to bring her a meal and some ale.

"Who are you?" The dwarf asked in an almost menacing tone but Athelas wasn't scared. He was really at her mercy and she got a kick out of that.

"Athelas Wolfsbane, at your service." She retorted mockingly as the barmaid placed her food and drink in front of her.

She grabbed the piece of bread first and picked it apart before throwing the pieces into her mouth while she kept her gaze on the dwarf. "And you are?" Athelas raised a hand off handedly at him and gestured for him to start a conversation. He seemed determined not to speak a word to the young woman and Athelas wondered if it were due to her appearance.

She looked rather rough on the edges and scars were all over her body. She could feel his eyes on her and she knew where he was looking. The jagged scar across her forehead from a man who had tried to take advantage of her. It was an ugly scar, to say the least.

"It is rude to leave a lady waiting, my lord." He raised a dark eyebrow at her boldness and finally offered her some words but not the ones that she was hoping for. Athelas grabbed ahold of the sausage and took a rather large bite out of it.

"You are a skin-changer."

His sentence made her stop mid-chew. The tone of his voice annoyed Athelas. He spoke of her race as if it were some kind of disease. Like dwarves were superior. Arrogant. The pointed look that Athelas gave the dwarf was one that could have set fire to him if she tried hard enough.

_Let me kill him. _Gaia shouted in Athelas' head as she grabbed her dagger from its sheath and began to stab at the table with the weapon. It took a lot of energy to keep Gaia at bay. Athelas was just trying to keep herself moving so the wolf deep within her didn't come out.

"And you are a dwarf. How about you give me a reason not to allow those men to have their way with you because, at this point, I am ready to help them." She played with her dagger in her hands and looked up at the dwarf with a mischievous glint in her eyes. She glanced to the men at either side of them and they were watching her closely.

Her attention then turned to the tall man dressed in all gray that made himself at home at the table with Athelas and the dwarf. "Mind if I join you?" She scoffed at his words because he had already seated himself and there was no stopping him from joining them. He stopped the barmaid and asked for a meal and then looked to the two seated at the table before him.

"I should introduce myself. My name is Gandalf. Gandalf the Grey." He told the two of them as Athelas regarded the man with a sharp eye, taking in his entire being. He was tall, much taller than the dwarf or even herself. He had long gray hair and an even longer beard and he wore a pointy hat atop his head which made Athelas raise an eyebrow at him.

The dwarf spoke lowly, saying that he knew who the man was and Gandalf chuckled at his words.

"Well, now, this is a fine chance. What brings Thorin Oakenshield and Athelas Wolfsbane to Bree?" Gandalf asked as the raven-haired woman downed her entire pint of ale and glared at the man who was insinuating that she had anything to do with the dwarf in front of her.

The man seemed to feel Athelas' annoyance and raised a dismissive hand in her direction which caused her to narrow her eyes even more. Gandalf began to discuss matters that just pertained to Thorin and he seemed to grow angry as each word came out of the man's mouth.

"This will not be discussed in front of _the skin-changer_." Thorin sneered as he pointed a thick finger at the skin-changer across from him and that was when Athelas snapped.

Her teeth changed before their eyes as she snarled at Thorin. Gaia wanted out. She wanted dwarven blood at that moment. Athelas knew her half changed form was terrifying and that was what she wanted to be.

"I am an animal. Savage, they say. You go through what I have and tell me you wouldn't come out a monster. I dare you." She snarled at Thorin as she got up from the table and grabbed her back.

She retreated outside and made her way out of Bree. She decided that she would make her bed for the night under a tree not far from the edge of the city. She had taken off her armor and clothes to allow her wolf to come out.

Her wolf was restless. She paced where she planned to sleep back and forth, snarling to Athelas that she didn't like the dwarf. He was arrogant and prideful. Gaia didn't like that.

A twig snapped just a few feet from Athelas and she bared her teeth at whatever it was sneaking up on her. The tall gray-haired man was standing before her with his arms slightly raised in a defensive position. Gaia didn't want to be disturbed. She wanted to wallow in her anger and eventually pass out. Athelas was interested in hearing what the man had to say and Gaia reluctantly allowed her to change back.

Athelas quickly changed into tunic and trousers and moved so she was standing in front of Gandalf. "You are the reason I am here, aren't you?" This wasn't meant as a question more a statement that she wanted to be confirmed. He nodded his head at her and retorted that he was only partly to blame for it.

"You seek vengeance against the pale orc, correct?" Gandalf said in the same manner that she had just done to him. He wasn't asking a question. He knew things about her that she hadn't told others. She didn't talk about the slaughter of the Wolfsbanes. "What if I had a way for you to get your vengeance and find a home?"

Those words caught her attention. She longed for a home. She wouldn't ever admit it but she longed to be whole again and belong somewhere. Gaia liked to idea of vengeance. She wanted to get her teeth bloody.

_Do it. This is what we came here for. _

"How would I get my vengeance?" Athelas asked the wizard as he offered her a small smile, knowing he had planted his seed in her mind and there was no stopping her now.

"In two fortnights, there will be a meeting in Bag End of the company traveling to take back the dwarven city of Erebor. Azog the Defiler wants Thorin dead. That is where you will get your vengeance. On this quest." He replied to her question as she narrowed her eyes at him.

She didn't want to help the dwarves. She did want revenge.

"How would I know where to go for this meeting?" Athelas asked.

The wizard began to walk away from her and only offered that there would be a mark on the door of the hobbit hole that he chooses. Athelas watched as the man walked out of her sight and she was more confused than she had been before. She decided to sleep on this and make a decision the next day. Her decision would be made by a dream she had that night and when she awoke, she needed to be a part of this company.

Though the dream she had told her that this journey would most likely be the death of her. She was ready to face death head-on with a bloody smile on her face.

This is my first official Hobbit Fan Fiction so be gentle. I am really proud of Athelas as a character and am excited to see where her journey goes and how it all turns out. This will be painfully slow in the romance department. Thorin and Athelas obviously didn't get off on the right foot so there will be resentment on both sides. They have to gain each other's trust which for both is a hard thing to just give freely. Athelas is a strong character that really doesn't know how to interact with others anymore so expect so conflict there. Athelas likes to think she needs no one but she really just wants a home. She is pretty rough around the edges but I hope you fall in love with her as I have.


End file.
